Demolition

This is such an interesting character study. At the beginning I was immediately emotionally connected to the main character. I understood that what he was doing was a coping mechanism for his grieving, but then the stuff he began to do became more and more irrational. I felt myself disconnecting. The relationship he formed with Karen and her son was just unrealistic and felt weird. This film went to places I didn’t expect and there were multiple points where I had completely different endings in mind then what actually transpired. I regained my emotional attachment as Davis and Chris’s relationship grew, and when I got to the last 10 minutes of the movie I finally felt like I understood the point of the weird middle part of this… Grieving doesn’t have to look any one specific way. Even though Davis’s actions after the loss of his wife were unrealistic, I don’t think they ever were supposed to be. We shouldn’t have any pre conceived idea of how someone needs to, or should act after loss or any kind of emotional trauma/distress because everyone is different. Davis taking apart various items throughout the movie is a representation of him taking his whole life apart. When he finally got to the point where he could properly come to terms with the death of his wife, realizing it was time to rebuild everything, I honestly teared up. The ending was so great to me. Also, of course Jake Gyllenhaal is great in this, that should go without saying.